Bainbridge Island Review

Benefit drive brings in dozens of bikes

Tom Leurquin spent the day at Bethany Lutheran Church gathering a boatload of bikes as islanders brought him donations for Bicycle for Humanity’s third-annual collection drive on June 22.

Leurquin, who has worked for the Seattle chapter of the nonprofit that sends used bikes to southern Africa, said he took in about 40 used bicycles.

While it was a slow day and fell short of the amount brought in last year, the quality of the bikes made up for it.

“I tend to get actually better bikes from Bainbridge. It’s just a wealthier community,” Leurquin said. “I was pretty happy with the quality of the bikes I got, for sure.”

The Saturday before the Rotary Auction also helped bring in a few more bicycles. A woman who dropped off a bike said she had seen four or five more at a garage sale she had just visited. With that tip, she and a Bicycle for Humanity volunteer were able to add a few more to the drive.